Familie Kirschroth
Up until the Second World War the Jewish family, Kirschroth, had a shoe and textile shop at this address. They also lived there. The parents were of Polish origin and the father, Samuel Kirschroth, born 1st April, 1893, came to Minden during the First World War as a prisoner of war. In the camp he met Helene, nee Ingberg, born 15th June, 1898, later to become his wife, who worked there as an interpreter. Her parents had moved to Minden while she was still a child. The family had three children, Isidor, born 11th February, 1919, Herbert, born 22nd December, 1920 and Charlotte, born 4th September 1923.
Both parents were active Social Democrats but their party membership and their religion made them victims of isolation and intimidation from the beginning of the Nazi dictatorship onwards. The Law to Rescind Naturalisation allowed the Nazis to take away their German citizenship, as happened to all Jews of Eastern European origin. In 1938 they were deported as ‘unwanted aliens’. On 28th October, 1938, the Kirschroth family was arrested and taken to a camp at Hannover. From there they were taken to the German frontier with Poland and sent across the border. Between 17,000 and 18,000 Jewish people shared this fate but were not willing to accept it at first. For ten days they moved backwards and forwards across the border during freezing, snowy weather. Later the Kirschroth family landed in an internment camp at Sbascyn/Bentschen. From here the eldest son, Isidor, managed to get to Great Britain. He was the only one of the family to survive. In May, 1939, Helene Kirschroth was allowed to return to Minden to sell their property but the money was seized and never handed to them.
After the German invasion of Poland on 1st September, 1939, Samuel, Helene, Herbert and Charlotte found themselves under the Nazi regime again. There is no trace of them and we can only guess there fate.
